Denzel Bentley’s reported move to Zuffa Boxing adds another abandoned fight to the WBO’s purse-bid record, following Hamzah Sheeraz’s title surrender and Keyshawn Davis’s withdrawal from a shot at Devin Haney.
Two champions have chosen to give up their belts, while a mandatory challenger rejected a payday exceeding $2 million. That suggests the issue extends beyond one poorly funded defense: the WBO’s process is producing terms fighters are willing to leave behind.
“Three consecutive purse bids, all end with no fight and the parties who walked away all headed in the same direction,” boxing reporter Jake Donovan wrote on X. “Couldn’t be a clearer path if it had a neon sign pointing that way.”
Bentley reportedly signed a multi-fight Zuffa deal and will appear against an opponent to be named on the November 7 Chris Billam-Smith–Chev Clarke card in London. Dan Rafael reports that Bentley will relinquish his WBO middleweight title rather than accept $160,000 to defend against Yoenli Hernandez.
Sheeraz previously surrendered his WBO super-middleweight championship after Queensberry won the September purse bid for his mandatory defense against Janibek Alimkhanuly.
Davis’s case involved considerably more money. Top Rank won the Haney fight with an $8.55 million bid, leaving Davis entitled to $2,137,500 under the WBO’s 75–25 split. He declined to proceed as the challenger.
For Zuffa, these departures offer a recruitment opportunity. Established fighters can arrive with name recognition built through championship boxing without bringing the same mandatory obligations into their next appearance.
The WBO can enforce its rules by removing a title or replacing a challenger. What it cannot guarantee is that either consequence will persuade a fighter to accept the resulting purse.
That leaves Hernandez and other contenders exposed. Earning mandatory status can secure an order, yet still fail to deliver the intended opponent.
Donovan sees the departures pointing toward Zuffa. Bentley’s reported signing gives that argument substance, although it does not establish that Zuffa coordinated all three withdrawals.